Three Hour Tour
by SallyTheodora
Summary: In which our carefree heros and heriones decided to see the sights of London at speed, and complications arise. HP HG FW GW GW RW ensemble, no pairs. Slight AU. Fluff.


**Disclaimer: **Harry Potter, associated characters and setting belong to JK Rowling and whoever she shares the rights with, which does not include me. This is for entertainment purposes only, with no copyright infringement intended, or profit made.

**Three Hour Tour**

In which our carefree heros and heriones decided to see the sights of London at speed, and complications arise. HP HG FW GW GW RW ensemble.

Hermione's voice had to filter out through multiple printed pages. "Look, guys, it will be easy. I printed out three different options. All of them just cost a day pass on the underground, and we can see all the major sights of London."

Harry was nodding. "Here, give on to Fred and one to George. Since we're at a bit under a day, let's hit the sights they all agree are essential. It's not like we'll be leaving England forever, or anything. We just have to be back here in time to make it to the Ball at the Ministry."

Fred and George nodded, and motioned for Hermione to start reading off the Places on her list. "

"Westminster Abby?"

"Yes." George confirmed.

"Of course, although my tour threatens us with long lines and delays if we don't get there early." Fred read.

Harry looked at his watch, the gift from the Weasleys for his birthday. "It's 8 am. That's still early for tourists, right?"

"Yes, but, honestly, Harry, wee still have to get there."

George looked at his 'London in a day.' " 'Tube to Westminster' is all mine says."

Fred nodded, looking lost.

Hermione, taking the intuitive, dragged them all out of the Leaky Caldron, and onto , where she grasped her tour printouts tightly in front of her, like a shield, and asked the first person she saw wearing reasonable cloths for directions to the nearest tube stop.

The man, wearing a nicely tailored shirt, looked a little confused at being asked tourist questions in a Local accent, but he still pointed them in the right direction, and offered them luck on seeing the city in a day.

When they got to the stop, Hermione turned to them, and laughed. "Guys, do you mind doing part of this tour backwards?"

"Why?" Harry posed to look at the stop name. "Oh. I didn't know our favorite pub was in Covent Garden."

Fred read his tour. "Right, people, lets look about at the shops on the way to the National portrait gallery. We're on a schedule, don't forget."

"Plus, this way we can get off peak Transit Cards." Harry was every practical as he was reading over George's shoulder

They meandered at medium speed through the shops, in a generally Trafalgar Square- wards direction. Hermione kept gravitating towards used book shops, While the Weasleys seemed to been drawn towards electronic from the 1980s. Harry and Hermione kept having to interfere, reminding them quietly that suck things were not only worth-less at Hogwarts, but would be in immanent danger of dissection at the Burrow.

There was one moment in which Hermione decided to doubt her own sanity would last the day. Fred and George wandered into a corner shop, and been completely mystified by the jar of rubbers on the checkout counter. Harry and Hermione hauled them out the door. Hermione turned pink, and stayed that way, as Harry spent three blocks trying to explain without having to explain. Finally Ron caught on, and explained that they were the equivalent of certain spells taught by Mr. Weasley to every Weasley boy on the morning of his thirteenth birthday.

At this point, the whole party was blushing Weasley red, and Harry was happy to be distracted by the first glimpse of White marble through the buildings. Ginny held on to Harry, apparently intimidated by the traffic. Hermione was find with the traffic, but eyed the pigeons with a well earned dread.

The National Gallery involved a lot of Head tilting, and asking Hermione questions. Hermione was going through book withdrawal, although she's gathered 14 pamphlets from the entry desk. An hour and a half later, they all judged themselves to be cultured enough, except Hermione.

"Hermione, if we leave parts unseens, that just means we'll have to make time to come back some other day. The paintings aren't going ta walk away, now are they." Harry added a wink on the end of that, making Hermione laugh. As her laugh bred into a full giggle attack, he steered her out the door, and told her to greet Nelson before they went down Whitehall.

Hermione made them take a two minute detour to go look down the mall towards Buckingham Palace. She said it wouldn't be a London tour if they didn't at least see it from afar.

They all looked at the gates and guards at Downing street, and had a quiet discussion about the sheer number of wards remaining. One of the policeman Winked at them as they admired the wards, and Harry nodded back. As they walked toward Big Ben, Harry explained that the man was a Hit-Wizard who had been asking Kingsley for quieter duty recently.

The teens ohhed and ahhed at parliament, and Hermione regretted the paperwork required for a visit, but still dragged them all across the street to the Jewel Tour and the photo tour.

The line at Westminster Abby wasn't too bad, for a Friday at 10:30. Harry took the time to scamper off and get a selection of crumb free snacks for them to eat as they waited. Weasley boys, after all, think and tour with their stomachs. He also took them all aside and told them to give Hermione as much time as she wanted in Poet's Corner.

Ron's eyes misted over as he watched Hermione explore Westminster. Harry was more interested in the residual magical energy hanging about the center of the Nave. HE was beginning to suspect there had been more magical cooperation with the royals then was commonly suspected, given that the crowning ceremonies were the only reason he could think of for the lingering feelings of blessing and peace scattered about the place. Which is not to say the entire place was peaceful. The choir stands had seem enough teenaged angst in their lifetime to be halfway to a poltergeist.

They stopped long enough to obtain and consume a bag full of sandwiches, and then Hermione bravely lead them down into the Underground.

"It should be easy. We just take the yellow thingy to Tower Hill. Can't miss that, given we're trying to get to the Tower." Fred's tour in a day had little maps with colored lines. He was thrilled with the simplicity of it all. "Then, after that, it's the red thingy to Tottenham Court and walk to the British Museum. And once we have to drag Hermione out due to them closing, it's time to get spiffed up."

They group got their tickets, deciding on zone one, none peak, and preceded to follow any sign with yellow on it.

Fred seemed enthralled by the announcements, which could clearly tell people to 'mind the gap' but could garble every word on the other announcements. Harry had to rescue Ginny from two escalators, which she maintained were trying to eat her shoes. He decided to just keep ahold of her until they were safely back to street level.

They waited, Fred an George with their heads on a swivel, for their train. Hermione managed to get ahold of Ron' collar in time to prevent him from getting on a green train. Finally, after Ron complained about the wait, and Hermione pointed out it had only been three minutes, there came a train with a yellow spot. They got on, and the twins declared their intent to stand, even though the train was close to empty at mid-day. Hermione sat, and Ginny sat clinging to Harry, although she was slowly recovering from her perilous experience. Fred almost fell over twice when he let go to try to read more of the adverts along the ceiling.

They talked about the things they'd seen, and how boring the party that night was going to be. This started Fred and George on their politician impressions. Which lead to a more general game, in which the twins stared doing and impression, and the first to guess who it was that they were impersonating got a point. Hermione offered to keep score, but they all decided it was only for temporary glory, and they could keep score in their head.

It was during a quite good Impression of the taciturn Kingsley Shacklebolt that they heard the announcement that made them all look up confused. "Coming into Westminster. Parliament, Big Ben. Please be prepared to depart, as the tourists will be prepared to board."

"Wait, what line are we on?" Hermione Grabbed George and Fred's guides, then hit her head back into the window behind her.

"Hermione?"

"We're one the circle line, going clockwise. We've just spent" She checked her watch "fifty nine minutes going about underground and we've gotten nowhere."

The twins looked at each other, and started singing "Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, A tale of a fateful trip, That started from this tropic port, Aboard this tiny ship."

Harry knew what was coming, and stated laughing. Hermione seemed to be more concerned about the looks they were getting from the people around them, and she was already blushing and looking embarrassed. Harry was thinking back to one fevered day home sick from school when Mrs. Figg had left him in from of a telly running a black and white marathon.

Fred and George had no shame, and continued. "The mate was a mighty sailing man, The skipper brave and sure. Five passengers set sail that day..."

The twins were ready to ham up the next line, and even Harry joined in to sing " For a three hour tour, a three hour tour."

There was some halfhearted applause from the rest of the car, leading to Fered and George taking bows, before they turned to Hermione and asked in unison "Can we go around again?"

Harry looked at her, and raised an eyebrow. "Do you think we could use getting lost on the Tube as an excuse to get out of the stupid Ball?"

"Ginny is making threatening faces from behind you, Harry, so no. But, I guess we could at least take the long way around to the tower, since were already on the train."

Fred and George decided this was "Excellent!" An then precede to try and distract the group once again. And since they were Fred and George, they did, in fact manage to get them to ride around three times. Hermione was too busy laughing to be angry, but Ron's pleading for a stop for tea could only be ignored for so long.

At the corner pub they stumbled into, giggling, Ginny leaned over to ask "Next year, can we ride the Knight Bus around all day?"

Hermione smiled, and replied "Only if we pack Ron a picnic."

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AN I would like to thank Camp Nano (which made me look about for available plot bunnies) a thunderstorm riddled day in Seattle, which seemed to multiply the umbrella population of the rail riders, and http:/www. / destinations /london/ for helping this baby plot bunny come to life.

Thanks for reading.


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